


Only a Kiss

by Ren_Maisley



Series: Blades and Ballads [1]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Crush, Awkwardness, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Kissing at Midnight, M/M, Minor Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/Claude von Riegan, Minor Dorothea Arnault/Hubert von Vestra, Minor Mercedes von Martritz/Dedue Molinaro, New Year's Eve, New Year's Kiss, New Year's Party, New Year's Resolutions, Secret Crush, annette wants to be mature
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:48:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26215114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ren_Maisley/pseuds/Ren_Maisley
Summary: While attending Claude’s New Year’s party, Annette gets dared to ask her (maybe?) crush Felix for a kiss at midnight.
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic & Mercedes von Martritz, Annette Fantine Dominic/Felix Hugo Fraldarius
Series: Blades and Ballads [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1903849
Comments: 10
Kudos: 27





	Only a Kiss

**Author's Note:**

> A part of my Felannie fic series using prompts gathered from [OTP prompt generator ](https://prompts.neocities.org) by [otter](https://twitter.com/akageucchuujin)  
> Prompt: Annette: hey guys guys I dare you to give me someone to kiss at midni- Annette: NO NO NO NOT THEM

Yellow was a strange color for a New Year’s Party.

That’s what the color was, even though Claude _insisted_ it was gold. Yellow streamers were taped to the top of doorways, yellow Christmas lights were strung up on every wall, even the deer antlers above the fireplace had yellow tinsel draped over them.

Usually Annette was very much into bright colors, but the shiny glint everywhere she looked had started to wear on her eyes. She shook her head and focused on what Mercedes was saying, feeling a little bad about spacing out while her best friend was talking.

“--and all of that will help me prove my devotion to the goddess. That’s my New Year’s resolution.” Mercedes finished, clasping her hands together in a fit of enthusiasm.

“That sounds great Mercie!” Annette gushed, hoping her blind support would make up for her inattentiveness.

“Yes, that’s all well and good,” Lysithea said blandly, smoothing out her dark purple skirt as she stood up straighter. “My resolution happens to be a bit more ambitious. Top of the class at Garreg Mach University!” She put hands on her hips and lifted her chin, proud and solemn. “That’s what I’m aiming for.”

“What about you Annie?” Mercedes asked after a brief pause.

“Oh!” Annette hadn’t really thought about her resolution. “I guess I’d like to do a bit better in school, like Lysithea said.”

“A bit better?” Lysithea scoffed. 

Dorothea cut in before Lysithea could reaffirm her personal goal. “And mine is to turn more heads at the opera this year!”

“With your looks or with your voice?” Annette asked.

Dorothea, her strapless crimson dress doing little to secure what it ought to be securing, leaned toward the shorter girl, a grin adorning her beautiful face. “Both!”

Annette and Mercedes giggled at that; even Lysithea gave a begrudging smile.

“Speaking of singing voices...” Dorothea kept her gaze on Annette. “Claude mentioned to me that you're a quote-unquote ‘genius songwriter.’ Care to explain?”

“Claude said that?” Annette squeaked, feeling the eyes of the three girls on her. She thought a moment before answering. “Um, one time he heard me sing a little song to myself, and one thing led to another, so now we swap lyrics and give feedback to each other.” Annette held up her hands, eager to explain herself. “But I don’t know what Claude’s talking about! My lyrics are nothing special.”

“First Felix, and then Claude?” Mercedes stifled a laugh. “You aren’t very good at hiding your songs, Annie.”

“Felix is a fan of yours too?” Dorothea asked, a suspicious lilt in her voice.

“A fan of mine?” Annette repeated, the words sounding strange to her ears. “No way! He’s just a villain who refuses to forget my songs. There’s no way he _actually_ likes them.”

_There’s just no way,_ Annette thought. She looked over at Felix standing on the other side of the room (she’s obviously been aware of his presence all night, lest he sneak up on her again), appearing as uninterested as always. His glazed-over eyes watched Sylvain and Ingrid’s playful argument, ignoring the alternative of Claude’s 4D chess flirting with Dimitri. Annette realized she spaced out again just as Dorothea brought up a dangerous topic.

“So, are any of you girls going to ask someone for a New Year’s Kiss at midnight?” the sultry songstress asked.

Lysithea immediately wrinkled her nose. “Eww, no thanks. Are you saying that you’re going to?”

“Yeah, Hubert and I are,” Dorothea said with no trace of embarrassment.

“Edelgard’s friend?” Lysithea asked, her eyebrows raised. “You’ve asked that creep to kiss you?”

“Oh! That reminds me,” Dorothea said, holding up a hand. She turned towards Hubert and Edelgard, who were standing next to the fireplace.

“Hey Hubie!” Dorothea called across the room, “wanna be my New Year’s kiss? Unless Edie already has first dibs…?”

Hubert, no doubt annoyed by this less-than-private request, glanced at Edelgard, who was barely holding in her laughter. “Edelgard and I have made no such plans.”

“So?”

Hubert sighed. “I suppose I can agree to that proposition.”

“Cool. See you soon!” Dorothea sang, unbothered by the fact that she just made Hubert Public Enemy No. 1 to most of the partygoers in the room. 

“Wow, Dorothea. That was amazing!” Annette marvelled as Dorothea turned back towards them.

“Why thank you,” she said, giving a short bow. “Now Mercedes, don’t tell me you don’t have twenty guys lined up to be your kiss tonight.”

The long-haired blonde giggled, tugging at the sleeves of her dark blue dress. “Dedue and I agreed to a New Year’s kiss earlier.”

That was news to Annette! “Mercie, you’re going to kiss Dedue?”

“That’s the plan, Annie,” Mercedes said with a good-natured shrug.

Now the redhead was getting a little ticked. Dorothea was sexy all the way, and Mercie had always been stunning, but Annette had at least a little bit going for her right? Her frilly, sky-blue dress could be alluring. She could be mature and grown-up like them!

“Alright you lovely ladies, I dare you to give me someone to kiss at midnight.” Annette said this confidently, like Dorothea when she had called to Hubert earlier.

Dorothea didn’t even need to think. “Okay, I dare you to ask Felix for a New Year’s kiss.”

Bah! Annette should have seen this coming. “WHAT? No, it can’t be him, he’s a villain. The absolute worst.” 

“You say that Annette, but your face tells a different story.” Dorothea teased.

_Impossible,_ Annette thought angrily. _My face can’t tell you anything, it’s too scrunched up at the moment!_

“If the perceived character of the person is concerning you, Dimitri might be willing to kiss you,” Mercedes offered.

“I hate to say it,” Lysithea began, her face lined with disapproval, “but Claude asked Dimitri to be his New Year kiss all the way back on Thanksgiving.” She sighed heavily.

“Well, I dared you to kiss Felix, so now you have to do it.” Dorothea said simply.

Annette was still wrapping her mind around the mere _act_ of kissing. She looked to Mercedes for help. She gave an encouraging smile back.

 _No, that is not what I need right now!_ Annette thought. _Ugh, I could scream._

Lysithea checked her watch. “Listen, I don’t care what you do, but it’s five minutes to midnight, so you’d better decide fast.”

Dorothea draped her arm around Lysithea’s tiny shoulders. “Aww, is Lyssie a little jealous? Let’s go find you a kissing partner right now.” She started to guide the smaller girl toward the neighboring room.

“No-- Dorothea-- I don’t need-- gah!” The two disappeared through the yellow streamers hung over the doorway, leaving only Mercedes to help Annette through this crisis.

“What should I do Mercie?” Will he actually even _want_ to kiss me?” Annette was debating panicking at this point. Panicking would definitely get her out of this situation.

Mercedes looked thoughtful for a moment. “Well, if Felix had any sense, he’d jump at the offer to get a kiss from you. You are adorable after all.”

Annette’s voice was small. “You really think so?”

Mercedes laughed lightly. “Of course I do.” She stretched out her back, glancing around the room. “I should start looking for Dedue, but just remember that whatever you decide, it’s only a kiss.” Mercedes gave Annette’s shoulder a quick squeeze before gliding through the doorway Lysithea and Dorothea went through earlier.

Annette was on her own.

 _Only a kiss?_ She thought incredulously, _To you maybe! To me, a kiss is like finals week, or a new Taylor Swift single; in other words, a VERY big deal._

First of all, did Annette even WANT to kiss Felix? Instantly her mind _screamed_ yes, but that was probably only because he was a little handsome. Okay, a LOT handsome. That dark blue, almost black hair, strong jawline, and… was it chocolate brown eyes? Annette was having trouble remembering the exact shade of his eyes, but that didn’t matter! All she had to do was remind herself that Felix was evil, and always teased her about her harmless yet embarrassing songs. That line of thought was sure to change her mind!

The conflicted girl checked her phone-- three minutes to midnight. Against her better judgement, Annette took another glimpse at Felix, and of course he decided _now_ of _all moments_ to loosen his tie and unbutton the top of his jet black dress shirt. At the sight of his sharp collarbone, Annette found herself walking in Felix’s direction.

Dimitri and Claude had wandered off somewhere else (to keep their promise?), but Sylvain and Ingrid were still there having a lively discussion.

Positively unprepared and continuously asking herself why she was going through with the dare, Annette walked up to Felix. To his credit, the bored expression on his face vanished when he greeted her.

”Hey, it’s been a while.” Same old Felix: cool as a cucumber.

”S-sure has!” Annette managed. Same old Annette: smooth as glass.

”Um, are you okay?” His words betrayed no strong emotion, but Felix had always been read best through his eyes.

 _Why do you seem so worried about me? Why do you trick me into thinking you care for me?_ The shocking amount of concern present in his eyes unleashed Annette’s torrent of words. “No because Dorothea and Mercedes are so mature and grown-up and I’m just a kid next to them and I didn’t want to lose so I just had to run my big dumb mouth and now I have to ask you to kiss me at midnight!”

Annette gasped. She covered her mouth with her hands, but the damage was done.

While Felix took a moment to make sense of Annette’s word vomit, Sylvain perked up as soon as he heard “kiss.” When he stepped in to interrupt, Ingrid, sensing danger, led him away by his candy-cane striped tie. 

Satisfied with the minimized amount of witnesses, Annette closed her eyes, awaiting her death by embarrassment. When the silence became too unbearable, she opened them to find Felix actually _smiling_ at her. 

”A New Year’s kiss, huh? Are you sure you want to kiss a villain like me?” His head tilted upwards, his tone slightly mocking.

”You know, It’s weird that you say that, because my immediate answer was _yes_ , but….” Annette cut herself off as she met Felix’s eyes. “Wait. Do _you_ want to kiss _me_?” 

”60, 59, 58….” Some people were starting the countdown for the new year.

Felix’s smile was gone, but his expression wasn’t uninterested like before. The only word Annette could find to describe his look was _intense._ ”I’d have to be a fool to refuse to kiss someone as adorable as you.”

_Huh. Mercie was right on the money._

Annette’s never seen Felix like this. She’s never _felt_ like this. Her mind was sluggish, but her body was itching to get nearer to Felix’s.

“30, 29, 28….”

“This... is only gonna be a kiss, right?” Was she drunk right now?

Light amusement splashed across Felix’s face. “I don’t know, can you trust a villain like me to--”

“Shut up,” Annette whispered, somehow getting even closer to Felix. “You don’t have to play the villain all the time, _Felix_.” His name tasted like the dark chocolate Claude had put in the little glass bowls that were on every folding table. Hershey _Kisses_.

Felix’s smooth voice hummed in her ears. “Oh, _Annette_.” Did she just shiver? “What if I like playing the villain?” Was he teasing her? She didn’t care.

“10, 9, 8….”

“Then I guess… I’ll let you….” His eyes were amber. That’s what shade they were. She just had to put her arms around his neck to get a closer look. It was okay because his hands were already wrapped around her lower back.

Annette couldn’t hear the rest of the countdown; all of her senses were simultaneously malfunctioning and hypersensitive because she was kissing Felix Frauldarius. She couldn’t wait a second longer, even though the countdown was nearly over. It was okay because Annette always made a point to be early.

He tasted like his own name. Had he been eating the dark chocolate as well?

Annette never imagined that Felix’s rough lips could handle hers with such care.

Were people’s thoughts always this fragmented when they were kissing somebody?

Annette and Felix broke apart right when the countdown ended. The music was blasting and people were cheering and she was no longer kissing someone-- but her gaze seemed to be stuck to Felix. To his credit, _again_ , he wasn’t breaking eye contact either.

Annette finally found the words she was supposed to say. “Happy New Year, Felix.”

Felix chuckled quietly. “Happy New Year, Annette.” When he removed his hands from her back, Annette took it as a sign to put her own arms back to her side.

Her senses were finally catching up to her; she could feel how red her face was. 

_What a time to get shy_ , Annette thought as she looked around. She couldn’t see any of her friends. _Did Hubert change his mind and flee from Dorothea? Did Claude make good on his promise to Dimitri all that time ago? Did Lysithea find someone to kiss? Did Ingrid or Sylvain? Did Mercedes get to Dedue in time?_

_Mercedes…. What did she say? It was only a kiss?_

“Hey Felix...” Annette started. She had finally found the words she was scared to say.

“Yeah Annette?” He was blushing too. Annette decided that that was a good thing.

“Was that only a kiss?” She bit her lip, uncertain what answer she wanted to hear.

Felix flat-out grinned at her. “Personally, I thought it was a bit more than a kiss.” No hesitation.

Annette decided that that too, was a good thing.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed what I’ve written. New Year’s fic at the tail end of August is a little strange, but oh well. I just started college and while it’s mostly online, I still have to hit the ground running! In the meantime-- study hard, but take breaks harder!
> 
> \--Ren Maisley


End file.
